During LTV Corp.'s darkest days, when the sounds of steel-making were replaced by silence, Cleveland manager William A. Brake had to play tour guide.

"There were people who looked at the equipment and had in their minds a swimming pool and an apartment building," said Brake, who spent 17 years at LTV and, after it stopped making steel, helped form an investment group, Cleveland Steel, that tried to buy the Cleveland Works last spring.

The group's bid fell short, but Brake was quickly hired by new owner International Steel Group Inc. to fill his old job - division manager of the Cleveland hot-strip mill that converts chunky steel slabs into thinly rolled coils.

In March, Brake, 42, became general manager of the entire plant. His predecessor, John Mang III, now oversees a plant in Burns Harbor, Ind., that ISG is buying from Bethlehem Steel Corp.

ISG Chief Executive Rodney Mott recalled meeting Brake on a plant tour in January 2002, when they walked the silent shop floor.

"He impressed us with his presence, his communication skills, certainly his level of interest in the business side as opposed to just the operations side," Mott said. "I very much admired his desire to save the Cleveland Works in some fashion."

While the plant's products remain largely the same - steel for appliances, parts, tubing and machinery - the company behind it is much different.

Unlike LTV, which centralized back-office functions and decision-making, ISG runs its plants as stand-alone units. For Brake, who holds a bachelor's degree in engineering and a master's degree in business administration, that means great responsibility - and greater risk.

"If you're not making money, you're not making money," Brake said.

Hourly workers, about 1,100 in Cleveland, also operate under more flexible work rules with a new labor contract forged by ISG and the United Steelworkers of America. Under the old contract, workers had fixed duties and little wiggle room to go beyond them. Brake explained new rules with an analogy.

"If you're helping your brother move to a new house and you happen to walk by when the refrigerator is going up the ramp, you grab hold," he said. "It's a lot like that."

Such flexibility helps amid flat steel prices and a soft economy. Brake has no plans to lay off staff. In fact, the company sponsored a thank-you meal for workers last week at a Cleveland-area hotel.

Brake and his management team have sought other ways to rein in costs until the economy rebounds. One tack requires more give-and-take among the plant's divisions.

"If the hot mill postpones a purchase, then the steel [unit] can make a purchase this month. We'll trade off."

At the same time, they're readying the plant's finishing operations, where steel is treated to make it smoother or rust-resistant. ISG's acquisition of Bethlehem, expected to close by month's end, is likely to bring Cleveland contracts with auto-makers, lost when LTV idled its plants.

"We've communicated that to people, particularly on the finishing end, who will have more demands on their skills and equipment," Brake said.

"We're gearing up to meet those challenges. We're going to be ready."

Between cost-control issues and production preparations, Brake spends his time walking the plant introducing himself to employees.